Geographic Distribution of Away Rotations Impacts the Urology Match Process in the United States

To evaluate the geographic impact of away rotations on regional interview invitations and matching. Urology applicants who participated in the 2019-2020 cycle were invited to complete a survey postmatch. Questions covered demographics, scholastic achievements, number and region of away rotations, number and locations of interview invitations, and matching results. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and t tests were used for continuous variables. Chi-square and fisher exact tests were used for categorical variables. Of 349 applicants, 88 (25.2%) completed the survey. Geographic location was a top consideration for away rotation selection; 86% placed it in their top 3 with 40% selecting it as number 1. Furthermore, 36.4% “agreed” and 37.5% “strongly agreed” that geographic distribution of home and away rotations impacted their interview invitations. On ANOVA analysis, the ratio of regional to total interview invitations was higher among applicants completing a rotation (either home or away) in a specific AUA section (P < .01). However, completing more away rotations (≥3 vs 0-2) did not increase the ratio of interview invitations to total applications (P = .49), and rotation location was not associated with matching in that region (P > .05). Geography is a key driver in away rotation selection among applicants and may increase the proportion of regional interview invitations. However, match results were not associated with geography of away rotations. With unprecedented changes coming to the urology residency match cycle, these findings suggest that loss of away rotations may have limited impact on interview invitations or match result.